Friday, July 30, 2010

Anyone who has even passed me on the street knows I am sick and tired of the doctors I have found in Arizona. Don’t even ask!

So I read with interest that a Texas hospital (Texas Health Harris Hospital Hurst-Euless-Bedford, how’s that for a name tag?) has periodic “Doc Shop” sessions in which patients and docs have lightning conversations—a la speed dating.

Surprisingly, some doctors are short of patients, what with the downturn and the increased coinsurances and copays.

The hospitals also benefit—and may be chosen for elective surgeries.

The hospital pushed the Doc Shops on Facebook, Twitter and through email.

Each session is for one specialty—OB-GYN, pediatrics. They are focused toward women, who make most of the health care decisions.

I would go to one of these sessions if they did them here. For now, I sort of google, stick a pin in the internet, read the random reviews I can get free, and then check lawsuits and actions against the doctor…then usually think, “Next.”

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Assistive devices can harm if you do it wrong. This from Craig Weinstein, an orthopedist in Gilbert, AZ.

You must get the right device for your problem and the right size for your frame.

Crutches are for an injury or surgery that does not allow any, or only limited, weight on the extremity. The top of the crutch should be one inch under your armpit. The handgrips should be opposite the tops of your hips. The elbows should have a slight bend.

You lead with the crutches and then swing your body up to them. Look ahead, not at the ground under the crutches.

Canes are used for balance or slight instability. The top of the cane should be even with the wrist crease when standing. Grip the cane in the hand OPPOSITE the leg that needs support. Let the cane strike the ground the same time as the injured leg.

Walkers are for recovery from hip or knee replacements or balance problems for the elderly. The top of the walker should be level with the wrist crease when standing. Don’t lean all the way onto the walker.

Got all that?

Diff subject: Do you get those catalogs full of diapers and crutches? I hate those.

Friday, July 16, 2010

When I was a kid back in Missouri, my father used to float down rivers in what was called a john boat. No rowing, just floating.

I was reminded of this when I read about river wading, an activity (and good exercise—like water aerobics with bugs) on Marco Island, Florida, near the Everglades.

Go to http://marco-island-florida.com.

At Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, called the Amazon of North America, is a slow moving river of clear, thigh-deep water. You can take a five-hour walking (er, wading) tour of it for $50 between November and the end of April. Call ahead at(239) 695-1023

For the wading averse (there's stuff down there) there are boardwalks and canoes.

Friday, July 02, 2010

When you finally see the doctor, do you assume he or she will ask you everything needed to decide what to do? In my experience, they ask, “Why are you here?” and when you start the litany, they stop you.

I have actually had doctors make the cutoff signal from sports or the basketball traveling signal for “hurry up.” I have also brought a letter outlining my two issues quickly. They won’t look at it.

Writing in Consumer Reports on Health, neurologist Orly Avitzur, MD (July 2010) advises asking the doctor how many of the procedure you need her or she has done.

I just read some stats that said the outcomes on joint replacements were much better if the doctor did 50 a year than 12 a year. Yes, it’s like asking, “Do you know how to do this?” Is it the doctor’s body? No. Ask.

Ask if you have a choice of hospitals? Ask about infection rates. If the doctor doesn’t know, find out how to get them—call the hospital.

Make sure all the people involved are on your insurance. Oh, this is a hot one! Often the ER doctor groups don’t take certain insurance (did you think they were on the hospital’s staff—silly puppy!). Anesthesiologists, especially, like to send big bills.

Ask if there is generic for the medicine recommended (and which you checked out and decided to take). If you start on brand-name samples, you will have to switch anyway after they wake you from your sticker shock fainting episode.

Ask how long you will feel crappy after a procedure? Do you need rehab? Can someone help you at home? Can the doctor’s staff help you arrange that? What about a walker? Etc. Etc.

If you sit there like a blob, letting Dr Welby figure it out for you, you will be hating life.

Thursday, July 01, 2010

I decided 25 years ago to stop obsessing over weight and not get weighed again the rest of my life. Fat and living with it.

At the doctor’s office, I get a hostile look or a power play when I say, “Pass,” on the obligatory weigh-in. I then say, “If I have to take a medication based on weight, I will get on the scale backward.”

They either send me on my way never to darken their doors again, or grudgingly go through this every time I come.

Turns out now they should be based many drugs on body size. Makes sense, right?

Funny about this—every year, 75,000 people die from taking too high doses of medicine. Fat is an element in metabolizing medicine, so the BMI (Body Mass Index) comes into play.

When you get a prescription, ask if your size was considered.

You might have to get weighed.

On the other hand, many doctors don’t know how to figure this, so don’t.

It’s darn hard to get on backwards—but for me, worth it. I am not climbing on that roller coaster again in this life.

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About Me

I am a long-time freelance health and science reporter, screenwriter, and blogger. My work has appeared in venues from the Costco Connection to Washingtonian and WebMD. I also used to teach creativity at the Smithsonian.